Nostalgia
by CK Aniston
Summary: AU: Olivia remembers the first time she and Alex met in college. (Rated T for mild language and mild sexy times)


Just a short little story I wanted to write instead of doing my homework. Le sigh... Hope you enjoy! Reviews are appreciated :)

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**-Fall 2000-**

Finally home after an exhausting day at the precinct, Olivia kicked off her black leather boots and unraveled the cashmere scarf from around her neck. An extravagant gift from an old relationship, the lavender scarf usually provided a source of warmth and comfort. Tonight though, it might as well have been strangling her. Walking into her sparse kitchen, she opened the refrigerator twice, the pantry once, and decided there was absolutely nothing to eat.

"Chinese it is," she said to herself as she picked up the cordless phone off its cradle and hit speed dial #4.

"Yes, hi. Pick-up for Olivia. Umm... I'll take chicken fried rice, mixed veggies, and a large egg drop soup. Oh, and extra fortune cookies." _Couldn't hurt, right?_ "20 minutes? Okay, thanks."

She placed the phone back into its cradle and proceeded to pour herself a glass of cabernet. Today had been hell. The Morris Commission was up Elliot's ass, Monique was _this close_ to being fired as well, and the new ADA seemed like a real bitch. _Stuck-up elitist snob_, Olivia thought to herself after their first conversation.

Olivia sank into the worn leather couch she had purchased way back during her first year at Siena, the cozy material bringing comforting memories of a much simpler time in her life. As hard as she tried to block out work-related thoughts, she couldn't get these ones out of her head. And unfortunately, her thoughts mostly reverted back to the blonde attorney. Yes, she seemed cold. Yes, she seemed like she was only out for her own interests. But this couch, the scarf lying casually at her feet, brought back a flood of memories. The attorney had slept on this couch many times, had cozied up to her girlfriend Olivia on numerous occasions. She had bought her the lavender Hermés scarf for no reason at all. Olivia had a fight with her mom, so Alex stopped by with a bouquet of hydrangeas, a bottle of wine, and that beautiful scarf.

"She must have changed after all these years..." Olivia wondered out loud while running one hand through her newly shorn hair and sipping on her wine. The Alex she remembered was warm, compassionate, thoughtful. But it had been over a decade, and even Olivia certainly wasn't the same person she was back then. No longer the bubbly college student she once was, going out on weekends with the girls and playing practical jokes on her lacrosse teammates. She was hardened, rarely smiled, and exhausted. Maybe Alex felt the same way.

As Olivia's thoughts drifted, she glanced at the digital clock on top of the TV. "Shit!" she exclaimed. It had been 15 minutes already, so she pulled her boots back on to leave the apartment and wrapped the scarf around her neck as she locked the door.

Walking down Houston Street, she pulled the scarf tighter as the October night seemed to grow colder by the second. Fingering the ultra-soft material, her mind wandered to the beautiful girl who had given her the equally beautiful gift, and she thought of the first time they'd met...

xx

**-Summer 1990-**

Olivia walked down Amsterdam Avenue, almost sprinting to finally get the hell out of this stifling heat. The city during summer was relentless. Sweating profusely and starting to itch under the nylon fabric of her green Jansport backpack, she finally reached the Jerome L. Greene Hall at Columbia University. She took the elevator up to the third floor, thankful for the constant stream of cool air from the AC vents.

It was only 3 weeks until graduation, but Olivia was in the city visiting her mom. She was already hard at work studying for the police academy's civil service test, final exams be damned. She was hell bent on not just passing this test, but _nailing_ it. Even though she spent the majority of her time navigating the shelves of the Siena library, she also spent a good deal of time at Columbia while visiting her mom in the city. But she really preferred the law library where students were considerably quieter and more focused.

Olivia walked back to her favorite spot behind the tax law section and spotted the cherry oak table she always sat at. Surprised to see another student deep in thought, she wondered if she should find another spot to study, but this was where she did her best work.

"Hi, mind if I sit here too?" she asked. A few moments of silence and she spoke again. "Um... excuse me? Is it okay if I sit here?"

The girl finally looked up from her textbook and noticed Olivia standing there awkwardly. "Oh! Yes, of course. I'm sorry, I kind of have a one-track mind when I'm studying," she said politely while slightly blushing.

"No worries, I'm the same way," Olivia responded. The girls shared a nervous smile before the blonde got back to work and Olivia opened up to Chapter 5 of her text.

What seemed like 15 hours later, but was really only 3 hours later, Olivia looked up from the pages of notes she had scrawled and stretched her arms over her head. She saw the blonde remove her glasses, pinch the bridge of her nose, and run a hand through her pale hair. It was then that Olivia noticed how attractive her study buddy was. Her face was slightly scrunched in frustration and she had dark circles under her eyes, but she was absolutely gorgeous. Olivia must have been staring, because she didn't notice the blonde take a glance down at her textbook.

"That's certainly not a law book, my friend. Are you an imposter in this fine library?" she asked with a smirk.

"Oh uhh- no..." Olivia said distractedly. "I'm actually studying for the police academy. I just come here because it's a lot easier to concentrate."

"That makes sense. So do you go here?"

"No, I'm about to graduate from Siena College. But my mom is a professor here so I kind of know my way around."

"Cool. I'm about to graduate, too. What's your mom's name? Maybe I've had her."

"Serena Benson. She's an English professor."

"No way!" the blonde exclaimed. "I had her sophomore year for British Literature. She was amazing. Really knows her stuff."

"Yeah, she's kind of a Brit Lit savant actually," Olivia chuckled. "That's her favorite class to teach. She made me fall in love with all the great writers, which is the reason I'm an English major."

"So am I, but I'm more of a historical non-fiction fan myself. But I guess we have something in common nonetheless." The girls shared another nervous smile, silently wondering where to go from there.

"Would you like to get a cup of coffee?" Olivia decided to ask. She had no idea who his girl was, if she would even be interested, but she might as well give it a shot. "I don't think I can keep my eyes open without some caffeine."

"Yeah, sure. There's a café a couple blocks down the street." They both closed up their textbooks and spiral notebooks and slung their backpacks onto their shoulders. The blonde extended her hand to Olivia and said "I'm Alex, by the way. Future lawyer and crusader for justice," she said with a grin.

Olivia let out a small laugh and shook Alex's hand. "Olivia, future cop and protector of man," she replied with equal humor.

"Well Olivia, it's very nice to meet you."

The girls walked down Amsterdam and turned onto 112th Street, chatting like old buddies. Alex was originally from Boston but did her undergrad at Columbia to get away from her overprotective parents. She was recently accepted to Harvard Law, a fact that Olivia knew put Alex way out of her league. Still though, Olivia found herself entranced with this beautiful creature who seemed witty, cynical, and extremely intelligent. They had so much in common. A shared affection for the New York Rangers, love for Joanie Mitchell and The Clash, running in Central Park, strained relationships with their parents, and they were both wearing the same pair of beat-up Doc Martens. Something made sense here, and both felt it deeply.

The coffee shop rendezvous turned into dinner at Café des Artistes and dancing in the West Village. The next day was another coffee date and a picnic in Central Park of wine, fruit, French cheeses and crackers. The weekend was a hockey game at Madison Square Garden and an underground concert for Stone Temple Pilots during which Alex, never one to hold back, squeezed Olivia's hand during the encore and placed a soft, lingering kiss on the brunette's lips.

They went home together that night, back to Alex's apartment on the Upper East Side. It was rather sparsely decorated, but the furniture and art strewn about was obviously expensive and well taken care of. Alex lit a lavender candle, discarded the denim vest she was wearing, and grabbed Olivia's hand. She led them to the bathroom where she pulled Olivia's black tank top up over her head and untied the chestnut hair from its ponytail. Olivia wrapped her arms around Alex's waist and pulled her in for a searing kiss while hands explored skin and tongues roamed wild. Alex briefly broke from the embrace to turn on the shower, the water pouring out in a steady stream. They quickly discarded boots, jeans, bras and panties until both were on full display. Olivia couldn't help but let her eyes wander down to the pale breasts, flat stomach, and light blonde strip of curls. Alex was equally taken aback by the sight of the most perfect breasts and toned legs she had ever seen. They took hold of each other once again, no words spoken, and found that their previous passion was not lost during the brief interlude. They stayed in the shower for what felt like hours, finally moving to the bed, exploring uncharted territory in the form of skin, legs, lips, tongues, breasts, toes, fingers. Climax after climax, Alex and Olivia finally tired themselves out and fell asleep, content in the embrace of one another. In the back of Olivia's mind, she knew she would spend the rest of her life in the arms of this beautiful blonde.

The girls continued on like this after graduation when Olivia finally got her own apartment in the city. For nearly 3 months, they kissed and held hands, went on dates, had sex, slept over, and exchanged little gifts for no reason at all. They were trapped in a bubble of their own, seemingly oblivious to the outside world. Until, that is, Alex finally had to leave for Boston. As she loaded up her silver Mercedes with boxes and textbooks, she pulled Olivia in for a final embrace and whispered in her ear, "I love you Olivia Benson. I'll love you forever." They shared one last kiss, and then Olivia was left in Manhattan with a broken heart and an empty bed.

xx

On her way back from China Garden with her bag of carry-out, Olivia felt incredibly nostalgic for that perfect summer way back in '90. Alex seemed like a different person now, but maybe that was just on the outside. Maybe she just built up a tough façade during her studies in law school. _Maybe there was a class for that_, Olivia thought, _and if there was, Alex would ace it_. She decided to give her ex-girlfriend, the only one who ever really mattered, a second shot. That warm, caring girl still had to be in there somewhere. She pulled her cell out of her pocket and dialed the number Alex had given the detectives earlier that morning.

"Cabot."

"Hey Alex. It's Olivia. I was just wondering if you'd like to grab a drink."

"Yeah. I would actually. God Liv... it's so good to hear your voice."

Maybe they'd end up together afterall.

**La Fin**


End file.
